New Delhi
The government has ordered to two battalions of the Border Security Force, comprising more than 2,000 personnel to move to the terror-hit Jammu region, a decision that comes in the aftermath of a spate of attacks in the sensitive area with dense forest and mountainous terrain making it vulnerable to attacks by terrorists.
Officials aware of the matter on Saturday said that the movement of the 2000 personnel, who are currently stationed in Odisha, is one of the largest deployments in J&K in the recent months.
Though officials did not share the date when the additional reinforcements would be moved, a senior officer, aware of the matter, said, “The order has been issued. This will be a large convoy and will be taken under strict security protocol as per procedure.” The additional personnel are likely to be extracted and posted to Jammu later this week, the officials added.
The BSF guards more than 2,289km of the international boundary that runs along Jammu, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat.
The two battalions are currently deployed in Odisha’s Malkangiri and Koraput regions along with other battalions as part of the anti-Naxal operations. While the two battalions were set to be transferred to Kanker and Narayanpur in Chhattisgarh for anti-Naxal operations, the decision to move them instead to Jammu has been taken in the backdrop of recent terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir and the meeting of chiefs of all forces involved in J&K security operations such as CRPF, BSF, Army, J&K police, and top officers of the Intelligence Bureau last Saturday, the officials said.
At least 25 people including 15 security force personnel have been killed in terror attacks in a series of terror attacks in Rajouri, Poonch, Reasi, Udhampur, Kathua and Doda districts this year. At least 6 terrorists have also been killed in gunfights. The Pakistan-backed terrorists have also attacked village volunteer guards.
{{/usCountry}}At least 25 people including 15 security force personnel have been killed in terror attacks in a series of terror attacks in Rajouri, Poonch, Reasi, Udhampur, Kathua and Doda districts this year. At least 6 terrorists have also been killed in gunfights. The Pakistan-backed terrorists have also attacked village volunteer guards.
{{/usCountry}}In the latest terror attack reported from Kashmir’s Kupwara district on Saturday, a soldier and a Pakistani intruder were killed in a gunfight close to the Line of Control (LoC), with some reports suggesting the role of Pakistan’s Border Action Team (BAT) in the infiltration attempt.
On July 18, Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) in view of the spate of attacks in the Jammur region. According to officials, the Prime Minister received a comprehensive overview of the ongoing anti-terror operations and emphasised on deploying the full range of anti-terror capabilities. Officials said the Prime Minister had directed for a robust and coordinated response to potential threats.
The spate of terror attacks in Jammu has led the security forces to step up vigil along the Indo-Pakistan border in Jammu and identify the possible infiltration points, including possible use of cross border tunnels.
In the backdrop of such attacks in J&K, especially Jammu region, security forces in Jammu have stepped up vigil to search for possible tunnels that terrorists from across the border could be using to enter the region -- an exercise that is being followed strictly after the joint meeting of chiefs of security agencies last week.
On July 12, the J&K police, BSF and Punjab police had also held a similar meeting, during which it was decided to conduct checks along the Punjab border districts in areas such as Gurdaspur, which is close to Jammu. Officials had confirmed to HT last week that the possibility of foreign terrorists entering India from international border in Punjab was also discussed.
“The possibility of foreign terrorists using tunnels along the Indo-Pakistan border in Punjab sector as Gurdaspur was also discussed. Sectors like Gurdaspur in Punjab are close to the Jammu region. BSF personnel keep watch for infiltration along the fence or even by tunnels. There is high alert at the border and vigil has been stepped up,” a second official told HT last week.
On Friday night, BSF personnel along the Punjab border caught a Pakistan national who had crossed the border and entered India at the area adjacent to Ratankhurd village in Amritsar. The man, who was not armed, has been handed to the Punjab police and is being questioned jointly by different agencies.